~ANASTASIA~I don't even know why seeing the ring made it feel so real; it felt like my marriage with William was just ending today. I guess even when I refused to admit it, I still had hoped that somehow we would fix it and get back together. I was okay with the little he gave me. I was okay with it all but this; god, I couldn't take it anymore.“Tell them, honey,” Mrs. Frost’s voice shook me out of my thoughts; I felt tears stinging the corners of my eyes.“I... I have to use the bathroom.” And with that, I ran out of there with no direction as to where I was going; I just wanted to get away from there, get away from Jimena, William, and everyone else.My heart was beating in my chest; I could hear it through my ears. God, why was I acting like I hadn't prepared for this like Jimena hadn't called me last night and told me about it? Why did it still hurt like I was just finding out today?I was lost in thoughts but sure felt it when I bumped into the wall, “Ouch!” I complained and l
~ANASTASIA~I calmed myself as much as I wanted to scream; I didn't want to attract more attention to myself.I looked up at his face with a bored expression. “What do you want, William?” I asked; he didn't respond; instead, he looked shocked, as if he wasn’t expecting me to have such courage. “Shouldn't you be with your fiancé?”“Are you jealous?”“What?” I chuckled, “Am I jealous?” I couldn't believe he was asking such a stupid question. When we were together he told me I had no right to be jealous so what a foolish question. “Why should I? I'm not your wife anymore, so who you marry is not my business.”“You're jealous,” he said with a mischievous smile. “I told you, you thought you could leave me; you're the one who drugged me so I could sleep with you. I should be the one to leave you.”“Blame game again; God, you're so sick.”“Yes, I'm sick of you. Following me around, did you think I would cancel the engagement when I see you?”“W-what?” Okay, he was out of his mind. “Let me go
~WILLIAM~I walked straight to the kitchen, went to the drink cabinet, and pulled out a bottle of whisky, and a shot glass.I walked to the kitchen counter, jumped up, and sat on it before opening the bottle and pouring the drink into the glass.I don't know what I was feeling; I mean, I should be happy that I'm marrying Jimena, that at least Anastasia would not be in our way anymore. This should be good news, but it wasn't; I wasn't happy at all. How could I be?Hudson marrying Ana? I couldn't let that happen, and the way she said it earlier sounded like she was happy.Hudson was the man she was supposed to marry, the man her family chose for her, till she decided to drug and take advantage of me. I agreed to marry her to save my fortune, and even when I was going to change my mind at the last minute, as she was a total stranger, she told me she was pregnant. I just couldn't abandon a pregnant woman.She owes me; Anastasia owes me because when her family disowned her, I accepted her.
~WILLIAM~I looked up at Jimena, who was now shaking her head in disbelief. “Jimena, I—”“Save it. Save it, William, I mean, I always knew there was something fishy about the marriage; I just didn't know it was… this?” She eyed me head to toe.“I think you're angry. Why don't we have this in the morning? The doctor said stress is not good for you, so—”“Oh, now you're pretending to care?”“What do you mean? You know how much I care for you.”“If you knew stress is not good for me, why the hell did you kiss Anastasia?”“Oh, that again…” I ran my hand through my hair. “I'm going to bed,” I said and turned to get my bottle, but before I could even get there, Jimena stopped me as she suddenly appeared in my way. God, I don't even know how she kept doing that when she was pregnant; she moved like a vampire.“I said no one is sleeping,” she said, blocking my way. I closed my eyes and calmed down as I remembered what happened the last time we had such a fight; she ended up in the hospital, a
~ANASTASIA~I woke up feeling better. Last night I thought I would lose my baby; Santiago called doctor Luke, as I couldn't afford to go to the hospital. William was too smart; he had loyal people working in hospitals, and so we knew he could have gotten the news of my pregnancy.Home, Doctor Luke checked and examined me; it turned out the wetness on my panties was harmless, my baby was fine, but he warned me to rest as the recent stress was weakening my body, which wouldn't be good for the baby.Doctor Luke recommended a few things that I was supposed to do to avoid what had happened to the report itself.So just like he said, I woke up feeling better, but since I was told to rest, Carmen insisted I stay in bed.I walked to the bathroom and took a shower while Carmen said she would be back with my breakfast.It didn't take long to finish putting myself together, as I was now done.I was on my bed and scrolling through my phone. I was bored, and even though I wanted to work, I cared f
~ANASTASIA~ My mood was suddenly ruined, as hearing Williams's name was like rubbing salt in a wound. “Ms., are you sure?” “Don't make me repeat myself; trash them!” “Go on, you know her condition; why are you making her shout?” Carmen questioned, and she quickly apologized before she picked up the bouquet and walked toward the door. “You forgot this,” I said, referring to the gift bag. She turned and then came toward the table to get it, but before she could reach it, a knock was heard on the door, making her rush to get it, which she didn't need to. But as soon as she opened the door, the person pushed her out of the way and came running to me. “Ow, Ana?” It was Vivienne. “I'm fine, Vivi; you didn't need to come here. I told you.” I said, and then eyed Carmen to leave. Vivi and I talked about things besties would talk about, things that we didn't want others to hear. If you have a best friend, you will
~ANASTASIA~Vivi looked as shocked as me; well, I was not going to fall for his games. Although this was the first he ever sent such a thoughtful gift, I was not a fool, so I looked away from Vivi.“You’re right…” Vivi said, which made me slowly turn to her, “This gift means nothing compared to what he put you through.” She said, and I nodded my head. “Oh, and that’s not the only reason I’m here.”“Okay?” I was curious as she reached into her handbag and brought out a card.“The meeting is set this afternoon at a fancy restaurant.”“What meeting?” I was confused.“Oh, we found a business investor. You know how much the company needs an investor.”“And he’s willing to invest?”Vivi nodded, confirming, “And what’s more he’s one of William's top investors. If we get him on our side, we might let’s say, convince him to leave Roger’s Enterprise; a little revenge would be helpful after what that bastard put you through.”“I don’t want revenge, Vivi; I’m the one who drugged him.”“You did?”
~ANASTASIA~I cleared my voice before I asked, “Okay?”“Should I pick up because he never calls me, so it must be you he wants to talk about?”“If you’re sure, then don’t. I don’t want him updated with what’s happening in my… life.” Vivi had ended the call before I could even finish the sentence.“Now get ready; we are getting late.” She said, and I nodded before I headed toward my closet.I was going to a work meeting, so I had to dress for business. With that, I pulled out my office skirt, a white official shirt, and a black suit jacket. After pairing with white heels, I was done as I did light makeup, and surprisingly, even after I ruined the style last night, the curls were still there, so my hair was good. I only sprayed it and made sure it had no splits.“Alright, I'm ready,” I said as I walked to the bedside table and picked up my phone while working on my wristwatch. “I hope the presentation is ready.”“Certainly not.”“What?!” I turned to her as she lazily got up from the bed
I wish I could say Carmen had an explanation for this, but she didn't. Instead, she looked down, avoiding me, and that was enough to give me an answer… I really couldn't deal with this right now, and just as I was about to say my goodbye because with how this turned out, she didn't deserve to be here, she had to leave even if I had to kick her out myself, well, that's when someone knocked, and I asked them to come in.“It’s your phone, Mrs. Frost.” It was the servant who took my handbag earlier; I had forgotten that my phone was in the bag, so looking at Carmen one last time, I walked out, taking my phone from the servant.“Santiago?”“Hi, Ana. Are you with Hudson? Is… it true?”“W-what's true? Can you calm down?”“He… Susanna…”“Yes, what about her?”“Her death… it wasn't natural; someone caused it.”“What?!” Okay, what was this?“Hudson just called.”“Hudson? But how…?” I stopped myself as I thought for a second, how did Hudson know about Susanna? “How does Hudson know about Susanna
I couldn't even imagine what she was feeling; it was painful, and the thought made me wish I could erase her memory so she could start afresh like she said because I will not be able to count the times I wanted to start over.When Mom passed…I even traveled, but of course, I never succeeded, and don't get me started on when I was married to William; if it weren't that I loved him, I could have started over long back.I wouldn't be here now.I would be in Africa; it's the most affordable and quiet continent, or… England, for a good education for my daughter.Yes, I booked tickets for both continents. I even spoke to apartment owners. Well, like I said, if I didn't blindly love William because I would make up my mind, Vivi would be there waiting, but as soon as William walks in and I see his thin lips and muscles, everything would go hazy, and I would forget to go to the airport.Well, I was stupidly in love back then, and no, I wasn't blaming myself or William; everything happens for
The maid looked confused like I had just said something that was not making sense.“She’s only been gone for a few hours; the police would advise us to wait.”“It doesn’t matter; this family has been in danger lately; we can’t risk another life now; call 911.”“Alright, Mrs.” She finally walked to the telephone while I stood still for a second as I wondered why she didn’t look worried. I mean, didn’t Gianna know, Carmen? Because Margot was the head, she was like family, and despite the betrayal, she still did a lot for this family. Sure, she was paid to do it, but nobody paid her to love us like her children, so she was still very important to the family.After calming down, I finally looked up. Well, my hate for stairs came with the pregnancy. I sighed and was going to give it a try when one of the servants came from the stairs, struggling with a big suitcase.“Wait, whose bag is that?” I asked as looking at it, I could tell someone packed to leave, not for vacation.“Mrs. Lancaster.
Wow, this was something I never expected. I mean, it was Jimena; she always wanted William, so of course she would do anything to be with him, including faking a pregnancy, which is truly hard to believe. As I was a mother, I would never fake a pregnancy.After calming myself down, I asked my assistant to get the job done, getting the cleaner to clean the place. I asked her to supervise as I needed the desk scrubbed or, if possible, changed.“Send me the documents to my email; I will have a look at home,” I said before finally leaving.I could tell the employees were giving me eyes; I knew they knew, but I didn't have the time; I needed to get to the house so I could speak to Carmen about her daughter; something really needed to be done.“Hudson can take down any news reports, right?” I asked Matt as I got in, and he nodded his head, “If I ask him, he might not believe me, or better yet, he will just think I'm hallucinating.”“I can do it, Mrs. Frost; you don't have to ask him.”“News
She sounded confident, making me gasp in shock; her confidence shocked me. I mean, this was absurd; this company was mine. It didn't matter if she managed it for a month or so; I was the rightful owner, and no board member would choose who to manage as this was Adira, very different from all other companies.Hearing the knock on the door, I walked and got it.“Mrs. Frost.” It was the Director, also a board member. “I was in—”“Get security; we have a trespasser.”“I—”“Now and let others know that they won't be voting; I am back.”“Yes, Mrs. Frost, guard!” He called for a guard who I assume was patrolling.“Wait, you're not serious, are you?”“If I were you, I would use the few minutes I have to button up my shirt and leave as soon as possible because I am very sure reporters are on their way. See, we have spies here, and they probably heard of this.”“Oh, I don't care. Like you said, I'm not a Lancaster; I have no reputation to uphold.”“Even better, the media will destroy you as an
I mean, she is a cheater since she slept with Harriot too, but Daniella was new and a woman, so how did they already hit it off?I silently watched as she asked Jimena to excuse us—she even called her babe?…Well, Jimena, who looked ashamed as she couldn't even meet my eyes, rushed out, leaving Daniella and me alone.“Why are you here?” was the question she thought was important, “an hour ago you were enjoying your series looking all miserable, and now you're here all… dressed? What's this? A comedy? Are there hidden cameras I don't know about?” She started looking around, making me shake my head. “Ana, you—”“Do you know she's married?” I cut her off with a question, sure, after what William made me go through, Jimena cheating on him shouldn't be my concern; in fact, it should make me happy, but I wasn't a fan of cheaters, so this disturbed me.“Excuse me?”“Jimena and I didn't know you liked women, but to do it in my office? Now that's unacceptable.”“Wait, wait, wait, did…” She lau
I was waiting for Hudson to explain why I couldn't go, but he just swallowed his saliva, insisting that I couldn't just go. Well, I really wanted to see my company, so not listening, I told him I would be back before dinner.“Actually… I'm thinking the restaurant. Feels like I've been locked up here for years.” I added it before finally leaving.Outside I was glad to find Matt already waiting by the car.“Mrs. Frost.” He said as he held the door open for me, at least he was the only one who wasn't looking at me like I was a ghost or something.“Thank you, Matt,” I said as I got in, and after closing the door, he got in the driver's seat, and without saying a word, started the car.The ride to the company was quiet.I was wondering what was happening with Hudson, why he didn't want me to come to my company. Well, I was suspecting the part about Dad because he also asked that I not see him, but I didn't want to overthink it; it would just give me unnecessary stress.I was lost in my tho
~ANASTASIA~After the shower, I asked Juliette to leave as she was making me uncomfortable. I then realized the house decor, tulips on the coffee desk instead of the window stand, and coffee mugs on the coffee table, which made it look untidy. I quickly pulled my hair into a ponytail and started cleaning and organizing the place.It took me thirty minutes, and once that was done, I went to wash my face again and apply makeup because, with the way my face was feeling, it was like I hadn't worn makeup in weeks.After that I got in the kitchen and started preparing lunch; it was really confusing as I didn't remember when I got here or when Ivy and Hudson left for work, although Juliette insisted they left in the morning. All I remember was Dad losing consciousness and Trey asking me to get help. Speaking of Dad, I made a mental note to visit him after lunch; I was not sure if he was taken to the hospital or back home.I baked potatoes for Hudson and Ivy while I made salad; there was no s
She was my mother, the woman who gave me life. Megan asked that I hear her out, so maybe… Nah, she didn’t deserve a chance. Ending the call, I got in the car and drove back to the abandoned apartment.I found that William and Dahlia were both treated. William wanted to leave; now I didn't need him. If anything, I wanted him to be with Ivy, so I let him go while I set up my computer and tried to figure out Margot, why she would be interested in the Lancsters' downfall. Was she perhaps in love with Martinez? I mean, this can be the only explanation for this.“Put a tracker in the socket; she can't be fully trusted,” I told Dr. Luke, who nodded before doing as I asked.It was already the early hours of the next day, so I knew Daniella and Rowan were driving to D.C, and with the secret code, the president would surely let them in. Matt was still waiting for a perfect chance to get into Lancaster's mansion so he could get Margot.Well, Dr. Luke had left; it was just me and Dahlia. I could